Ritsu Kasanoda
Character Outline Ritsu Kasanoda is the successor to the third generation master of the Kasanoda-gumi, the most powerful yakuza group in Kantō, Japan. He was raised at a young age to be the next leader so in effect most people see him as a very intimidating person and he has few friends because of it. Indeed, he's most well known for his long red hair and scary-looking face. Since Kasanoda's features have been intimidating since birth, his father claimed he had the right face to become the most frightening yakuza boss in history and actually trained him to appear tough and unapproachable. Kasanoda therefore initially doesn't talk much, though he can be angered easily. On the other hand, he can be somewhat delusional when flustered or in a panic, such as when he was remembering accidentally walking in on Haruhi while she was changing. Despite his outward appearance and upbringing, he actually tends to be a kind person who enjoys helping others. There are several rumours associated with him too. For instance, if your eyes meet his, you'll suffer three months of nightmares. Also, if his shoulders bump into someone, he or she will be sent to the hospital. Finally, if someone tries to talk back to him, he or she goes straight to the graveyard. His classmates know him as the feared "Walking Blizzard".l Plot Overview Kasanoda initially seeks to apprentice under Morinozuka, hoping to become as respected and admired as he, despite Morinozuka possessing - to paraphrase Kasanoda's own words - "a face as intimidating as that of the guard dogs of Hell". He suffers some humiliations at the hands of the Host Club members, who steadfastly refer to him as "Casanova-kun" or "Bossa Nova-kun", all out of a desire to learn how to make friends and be able to have fun with people. They even go as far as to dress him in a maid outfit with cat ears. Later experiences concerning a member of his household named Tetsuya show him that there are already people at his home who know his good side - they just didn't mention it because they knew he is not only kind-hearted, but also shy and easily embarrassed. Due to Kasanoda walking into a room too quickly, he has become the first person at Ouran High outside the host club to discover that Haruhi is a girl. He had a confused crush on her prior to learning she was a girl and consequently falls in love with Haruhi and attends the Host Club as a customer. However, when he tries to admit his feelings to Haruhi, he is rejected with no ill intent (even though Haruhi is usually quite adept when reading the emotions of others, she is usually quite clueless when others show a romantic interest in her), who considers him an understanding friend (this due to Kasanoda saying he had come to see her so Haruhi could talk to someone who knew her secret, so she could be at ease). Since Kasanoda has been told by Kyoya that Haruhi must appear to be male for 'special reasons', he resolves to not cause her any trouble by publicly stating they'll be friends forever, so she won't have to worry about being thought odd by associating romantically with him. Kasanoda, of course, does not realize that the 'special reasons' consist entirely of Haruhi's debt to the club. Ever since that incident in the host club though, his desire to have friends is fulfilled when everyone in the host club (hosts and customers) agree to become his friends. In volume 9, he gave Haruhi a tomato plant as a gift. Also, an update on his situation indicates that he's joined the Gardening Society of the school. In episode 25 of the anime he is seen surrounded by female students, apparently embarrassed but certainly not angry. Interesting to note, several members of his household are covertly observing Kasanoda's school life from behind the bushes at the time. Relationships Mei Yasumura A special chapter released in July 2011 in Lala revealed how he met Mei: when he is a first-year undergraduate business student at Ouran University, the twins send Kasanoda to Mei as a replacement model for her fashion show (they were originally the ones who were going to model). They eventually become friends, despite his being initially intimidated by her brashness and argumentative nature (he himself comments that she seems more like a yakuza than he does, at least in her use of profanity), what he sees as her excessive amounts of makeup, and her style of dressing. She even encourages him at one point to make a move on Haruhi (whom she knows he still has a crush on) while Tamaki is in the United States by showing her his carpentry skills; her reason for doing so is that she feels that he should learn to be confident in himself and what he does. It is the fact that she needs him and needs his help, however, that eventually appeals to him the most, although no romantic relationship is formed at the time. It is implied that it takes a few years for them to finally date, since their entry-level occupations (Mei is a rookie designer, Kasanoda a florist), rather than their student statuses, are listed in the volume 18 extra about their futures. In the volume 18 extras, Kasanoda is shown at the beginning of his romantic relationship with Mei Yasumura, who is informing him (to his astonishment) that Haruhi is pregnant, and commanding him to knit something for the baby; his friend Tetsuya Sendo can be seen in the background, cheering him on and voicing his approval of Mei. Haruhi Fujioka Due to Kasanoda habit of not knocking before entering a room, he becomes the first person at Ouran High outside the Host Club to discover that Haruhi is a girl. He had a confused crush on her prior to learning she is a girl and consequently falls in love with Haruhi. Ritsu keeps on frequently imagining Haruhi and attends the Host Club as a customer. When he tries to admit his feelings to Haruhi, he is rejected with no ill intent, as she considers him an understanding friend (due to Kasanoda saying she could be at ease because he had come to see her so Haruhi could talk to someone who knew her secret). Since Kyoya tells Kasanoda that Haruhi must appear to be male for "special reasons", he resolves to not cause her any trouble by publicly stating they will be "friends " forever so she will not have to worry about being thought odd by associating romantically with him. Kasanoda does not realize that the special reasons consist of Haruhi's debt to the club. Takashi Morinozuka Because Kasanoda hated feeling alone and so intimidating, he went to the Host Club to ask Mori if he could be his apprentice. The reason for this was because Mori was "scary" but he still had many friends. Tetsuya After a final confrontation with his father, he ran away from home. Scared and alone, he sat on the sidewalk in the rain, wondering what to do. it was here that he met Ritsu Kasanoda, who held out his umbrella to shield Tetsuya from the rain. Tetsuya instantly understood the kind of person that Ritsu was, and eventually joined the Kasanoda Syndicate. Ritsu considers him his closest friend. Trivia *Spirit from Soul Eater resembles him. *His voice actors include: Wataru Hatano (Japanese), Christopher Sabat (English),and Colleen Clinkenbeard (Young Kasonoda). *As a baby he resembles Gaara of the desert from Naruto. *He also looks like Marcus Damon from Digimon Data Squad if you take out the piece of hair that is in between his bangs and change his hair color. Quotes (To Haruhi) Hey look I'm sorry I- *walks in on Haruhi changing* (Haruhi) G-get out! (Kasanoda) *dashes out but gets caught by Hikaru and Kaoru* (Twins) PEEEEEEEPIIIIIING TOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!!!!!!!!! "MA!" (Sydicates to Ritsu) "YOUNG LORD YOU GONNA RUMBLE!?" Category:Characters Category:Male Characters Category:Manga Characters Category:Anime Characters